Puzzle Time
by Blazingfyres
Summary: "If I can give him something to live for, then he will come back." Miscellaneous one-shots; some fluffy, some not-so-much. K because I can.
1. Let's Begin

**Phi Brain one-shots because I feel like it. Sorry I've been a slacker, guys. I just really wanted to finish this anime, and so everything else kinda blurred to the background. PLease review, follow, favorite, whatever. :)**

**~Blaze**

**1.**

**Prompt: Hero**

**Timeline: Pre-Series**

* * *

"Jin!"

The boy looks up from the Sudoku as the name rolls off of his tongue, a wide grin gracing his lips when he meets the warm brown eyes of his friend. The man smiles back in response, ruffling his hair fondly and taking the finished puzzle from his hands. Jin Makata's eyes trail over the numbers before going back to the younger puzzler, bobbing his head in an approving nod.

"Yup. Looks about right, Kaito."

He giggles in response before holding out his hand, motioning for another one. "Give me more puzzles, Jin! I'm still bored!"

"Patience, Kaito. See? Look at Rook." Jin points at the snowy ball of hair that is lying under the tree, his breathing quiet and his face serene and calm. "He's relaxing quite snugly back there."

Kaito sticks his tongue out, his eyebrows furrowing. "He's sleeping. That's different."

"Still. He's not jumping around." The older man then tilts his head up to the evening sky, feeling the wind brush his cheeks and tickle his nose. He breathes it all in, and the sniffling next to him tells him that Kaito is doing the same.

"Hey, Jin?" Of course, he can't sit still for too long. Jin looks over with one eye. "What's up?"

"Well, since I want to become a master solver, does that mean I'm going to be some sort of superhero?"

Jin chuckles. "What makes you say that?"

Kaito screws his face up in concentration. "Well, I'll be traveling the world and setting them – puzzles – free, right? I've read a lot of storybooks that have characters that do stuff like that. And I thought it would be cool if I could go on an adventure with you and Rook, just like those other characters."

"Well, you'll need a couple things." Jin scratches his stubble thoughtfully, rolling his eyes up in thought. "Like a catch phrase."

"What's a catch phrase?"

"It's something that a certain person always says or does that makes them special."

"Okay…" Kaito stands up and faces Jin. He copies Jin and scratches his own chin, then sticks out a peace sign and grins widely. "Does this work?" He says through clenched teeth.

"That's kind of overused. Think of something better."

"How about…" He stuck his tongue out, bringing his two fingers over his eye. He pulled down his eyelid and glared, standing with his feet out wide. "How about this?"

Jin laughs and sits up with his legs crossed. "That's kind of funny, you know."

Kaito stomps his foot stubbornly. "I think it's cool." He then gives Jin a curious look. "So what else?"

"You'll need a best friend."

"I have Rook, so I guess that's okay."

"You'll also need an enemy to fight with."

"… how about you?"

Jin makes a face. "Why me?"

"Just 'cause." Kaito smirks, throwing his hands behind his head. "Anything else?"

Jin gives him a cheeky grin. "You'll also need a girl."

"A girl? For mushy stuff?"

"For mushy stuff," Jin confirms. He's met with a groan.

"Eww! Yuck! I don't even know any girls! Well, there's Nonoha, but… she doesn't count!"

"And why not?" Jin swallows that laugh that's coming when Kaito turns an unhealthy shade of red, sputtering incoherencies.

"Well – she's my friend! And I haven't seen her in forever! And – and – she can't even solve puzzles!"

"She doesn't have to solve puzzles for you to like her – "

"SHUT UP!"

Kaito lunges, and Jin grabs the boy in midair, grinning madly as he flails and thrashes in the elder man's hold. Finally Kaito is exhausted, and Jin sets him down next to him, both of them sprawling across the grass.

"You think I'd make a pretty cool superhero?" Kaito asks.

At this, Jin looks the boy straight in the eye and smiles genuinely, leaning on one arm.

"To me, Kaito, you're already my hero."

* * *

**It's short, I know. But they all start like that. Ah, Kaitoha. I just can't get enough of it!**

**Review, Favorite, Follow. You know the drill.**

**~Blaze**


	2. Smile

**Prompt: Favorite Color**

**Timeline: Pre-pre series. Like, way before – like – everything.**

**A/N: Hi again, humans. It occurred to me that we don't really know how exactly Kaito and Nonoha met - or at least, I don't remember seeing it anyway. So here's your little Kindergarten fluff because I felt like it.**

**~Blaze**

* * *

Kaito gripped his mother's fingers tightly, a worried expression crossing his face. Little kids his age were running around, screaming and laughing and – well – doing what normal five and six year olds did best. Kaito stares at a group of smiling grown-ups before hugging his mom's leg and burying his face into her skirt.

"I don't think I can do this, mom."

She reached down and patted his head gently. "Come on, a friend can't be that hard!"

"But – but – " Kaito stomped a foot. "Who else does puzzles, mom? I'm so weird! They'll think I'm a freak. Nobody's gonna like me."

At that, she kneeled in front of him, forcing him into eye contact. "You can't be so negative about everything. Just go talk to them! I'm sure you'll be fine!"

"Like what?"

"Ask them what their favorite color is or something."

"No way! That's not cool at all!"

Kaito frowned when she gave an exasperated sigh, standing and brushing off her skirt. "Look, I've got to go to work, alright? Daddy will be back after three to pick you up. If you make a friend, then you can go home with them, okay?"

He nodded, but his lips still drooped. His mother rummaged through her purse before handing him what looked like a keychain.

"Here. If you get bored, try solving this, okay? But I'm sure you will be fine."

He didn't smile, but his face did brighten significantly. Kaito waved as his mother left, then turned towards the other kids. Then he stopped, and made a beeline for the empty table.

He sat down, stuck in a world with nothing but puzzles.

* * *

"Hey."

Kaito looked up from his desk, his fingers freezing around the rubics cube in his hands. It had been a week since Kindergarten had begun, so he was used to other kids coming up to him and talking to him.

But this was different. He looked at her – a girl, he thought, surprised – and looked over her shoulder. Usually the kids came in packs of three or four, and none of them ever said anything friendly to him when they talked. Well, she didn't seem like she wanted to be nice either – she was glaring at him with bright brown eyes that made him lean away slightly.

"What?" He asked, crossing his arms. This usually made the others go away, their faces turned down and mumbling an apology or two, so he tried it.

It didn't work.

"Why are you always playing with those block thingies?" She asked, pointing to the rubics cube. Kaito swallowed before furrowing his brow, turning his attention away from her. "It's called a puzzle," he said quietly.

"Cool," she mumbled.

But he had already forgotten she was there.

* * *

She was there again. The brown haired girl. Every day since he first saw her, she had joined him, watching him as he finished puzzles. It wasn't that she bothered him… it's just that it was only him that she would ever try talking to.

"Why are you always here?" He asked once.

"What do you mean?"

"You could go play with the other kids. But you sit with me instead. And I never even talk to you."

"What? Am I annoying?"

"N-no. It's not that."

She clearly didn't seem to like the question, and Kaito nearly apologized for asking. But then she looked him straight in the eye and said, "Puzzles shouldn't be your only friends. You gotta have more than just that."

He stared as she got up and made her way to her car, laughing and hugging her mom.

It occurred to him that he had never even asked for her name.

* * *

"Nonoha Itou."

She had said it randomly once on the playground. They were sitting together on the bench, him with his keychain puzzle and her swinging her feet and staring at the mulch with a glare.

"Kaito Daimon," he replied almost automatically. Then he looked at her. "Why are you staring at the ground like that?"

"Because it got dirt on my new shoes. Yuichi kicked me off the monkey bars a few minutes ago."

"So why aren't you mad at him?"

"Oh, no. I was. I kicked him in the knee. He started crying."

Kaito cringed, scooting away an inch. "Ouch."

"I know, right? I felt like I broke my foot. That kid's a lump. But now my new sneakers are dirty 'cause I kicked the ground too hard."

Kaito found it best not to question her sanity. Whatever that word meant.

An awkward silence passed. Both of them looked between each other, glancing here and there and not directly in each other's eyes. Even though they had sat together for at least a month now, this was really the first conversation they had ever had together.

Both opened and closed their mouths at the same time. Then Kaito spoke.

"So what's your favorite color?"

* * *

"Come on, Nonoha. It isn't that hard."

"Don't rush me!"

"But you just have to – "

"_I said don't rush me! _Let me go! I can do it!"

The both of them wrestled with the puzzle, Kaito forcibly turning Nonoha's hand and her trying to break free from his grip. Both of their parents hadn't come to pick them up, so Nonoha and Kaito sat together in the playground, waiting for the Daimon's or Itou's.

"Fine!" Nonoha yelled exasperatedly. She thrust the keychain into his chest, then stood up and whirled on her heel. "You solve it, if you want to so badly."

"Nonoha…" Guilt began to wiggle in his stomach. But mischief got their first. He grabbed Nonoha's hand and dropped the block keychain into her hand, then ran for it in the other direction.

"K- Hey, wait, Kaito!" She shrieked, waving the puzzle in the air. "I don't even like puzzles!"

Kaito giggled, and she nearly stopped, stuck between angry and thoroughly surprised.

Kaito rarely ever laughed. And even if he did, he had never laughed for her.

"If you don't like it, then just solve it Nonoha!"

They both ran, stuck in a world with nothing but themselves.


	3. Curious

**Hey guys! Sorry. I wrote this literally in twenty minutes. I hope you like it, though. Thanks for the reviews!**

**~Blaze**

* * *

**Theme: Waiting**

**Timeline: Start of third season; "Raetsel..."**

**Spoilers: Not really.**

His back was up against the tree, his entire body relaxed and his eyes shut tightly as he breathed in the scent of the wind with hungry lungs. His puffy hair was messy and a wonderful nest for grass and leaves, but he didn't care. His chest had welled up with memories and emotions that he couldn't make out, and they all made him feel as though he was home at last.

Rook ran his hand through the grass beside him as if they were locks of hair. He was glad that the place hadn't changed. The green plains that seemed like they spanned forever, and the Stonehenge in the distance that dazzled as the setting sun touched it - it was as if it had been plucked straight from his memory. Even the tree had remained, even if it had gotten slightly larger since he first came here.

Rook heard a slight shuffling beside him, and he inwardly winced out of instinct. Really, he was being ridiculous; he had nothing to fear of Nonoha Itou.

"Did you have a good rest?" He asked, smiling as she rubbed her eyes. She had fallen asleep to his left, her body curled up into a tight ball. He wanted to comment about her ruffled hair, but thinking it was rude, he didn't. She did look cute like that, though.

"Yes. Thanks," she said with a tired smile. "Man, Kaito really is taking his time, don't you think?"

"Yeah," Rook replied. He allowed the conversation fall into a comfortable silence. She seemed to sense he wasn't in the mood for talking, anyway.

Nonoha Itou began to break through his thoughts - not in ways of attraction, but those of curiousity. He snuck a glance at her carefree smile, her golden brown hair that seemed to have caught fire in the bright sun, her bright brown eyes that seemed to drink in everything. This was the first time he had ever directly spoken to her without Kaito being beside him, and he was sort of fascinated by her. The only thing he knew was that she was one of Kaito's closest friends - although, apparently not too close, when he had asked both if they were, quote on quote, "together". (Although, when they had vehemently refused, Rook was sure they had something that he could easily call intimate.)

But one question still remained: Why did Kaoto like a girl who was completely disinterested in puzzles?

She was definitely smarter than most, and yes, she was charming and quite beautiful... But she absolutely sucked at puzzles. There was no sugarcoating it. Vaguely he remembered her struggling to do even a simple maze, her brain going kaput at the very mention of sudokus. If Kaoto was such an avid puzzle doer, then why... Why her?

Maybe it was because of their bond as children? Rook pushed that thought aside. Kaito enjoyed puzzles ever since he was born. If that were the case, he wouldn't have even looked at Nonoha. So then...?

"Hey, Rook?"

Nonoha pulled him from his thoughts. "Yeah? Sorry. I sort of... Zoned out."

"It's fine. I just... I'm sort of getting ansty is all." Nonoha shrugged with a smile. "Kaito's been a while, and I really hate waiting."

"So then why do you wait?" Rook asked, sitting up slightly. "You could just go back to the others."

Nonoha shrugged. "I... I dunno. I guess, maybe, Kaito needs someone to wait for him all the time." She looked at Rook with a calm face. "He's always reckless you know. I don't know how many times he has always nearly gotten himself killed. I - we all worry, you see. We think that Kaito may get himself killed one day, and he'll leave us without saying goodbye."

"But... Why do you wait?" Rook asked, not fully understanding.

"If... If I can give him something to live for, then he will come back. I've known Kaito since he was a kid, and you know... I know he cares. About me - I mean, about all of us. And if I can wait... If O can show him that he's important, that he matters, that I lo - "

She stopped, her eyes widening. Rook watched as she put a hand over her mouth in surprise. Then, just as quickly, she gave him a sheepish grin, knocking her head with her fist.

"Sorry. I sort of ramble a lot." She sighed, staring at the ground. "Basically... I wait because then I know that he'll come back."

And then Rook understands, and he can tell that Nonoha only realized it now. Kaito didn't see Nonoha as a person with qualities. He saw her as a person that fixed his flaws and brought out his strengths, someone who caught him when he fell. And Nonoha - well, she saw him the same way. In Nonoha's perspective, having someone to worry about, to cry with, to love and to save kept her sane and secure. No doubt Nonoha had faced her own hardships in the past, and she definitely needed Kaito to give herself a reason to matter. It was interesting: they were each other's strength and weakness at the same time.

"When did you realize you mattered to Kaito?" Rook asked, not meeting her gaze.

"I don't know." Nonoha shrugged. "Maybe since the day I met him, I always had."

He stared at her warmly lit face as she slipped into memories, raising his eyebrows. Kaito had somehow done something right for once. Nonoha seemed to have finally understood her own feelings for Kaito now.

That was one thing Rook could agree that the two of them had in common: cluelessness.

He watched as Nonoha ruffled Kaito's hair, the way Kaito cringed and shouted at her for being so childish. She berated him for showing up later than he had promised, while he questioned her about her antics with Rook. By the end of it, their cheeks were red and their eyes were soft.

Rook and Jin exchanged glances, a bright grin lighting both of their faces as the sun began to set.


End file.
